October 21, 2015 – Irvine, California –Umberg/Zipser is pleased to announce that partner Scott B. Garner and associate Todd W. Smith have joined the firm. Scott and Todd were previously with Morgan Lewis in Orange County.
Scott represents clients in complex business litigation matters. Along with his focus on lawyer liability disputes and ethics counseling, his practice extends to securities litigation, intellectual property litigation, corporate governance, and hospital and healthcare law.
Todd also has significant experience representing lawyers and law firms. He also represents clients involved in securities class actions, shareholder and derivative litigation, financial services litigation, regulatory investigations, trade secret and unfair competition claims.
“The addition of Scott and Todd deepens our litigation bench with the addition of two talented lawyers. I have worked closely with Scott for more than 15 years on bar-related matters here in Orange County and it’s very exciting to have him bring his practice to the firm,” said Dean Zipser. “As a stand-out litigator and contributor to the local legal community, Scott is a fabulous addition,” added Tom Umberg.
Scott earlier this month completed his term as chair of the Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct for the State Bar of California, and currently serves as an advisor to that Committee. He also serves as co-chair of the Professionalism and Ethics Committee of the Orange County Bar Association, as a director for the Orange County Bar Association, and as vice president of the Orange County chapter of the Association of Business Trial Lawyers.
“After practicing for many years at larger firms, joining Umberg/Zipser gives me the opportunity to build my practice in a small firm environment with some of the top lawyers in Orange County,” said Scott. “The way I see it we can offer clients the best of both worlds – the proven firepower to take on bet-the-company cases from an efficient, tightly-integrated small firm platform.” Scott added, “I am particularly happy that I was able to move here with Todd. We have practiced together for over a decade and he is a great lawyer.”
Scott received a J.D., cum laude, from Harvard Law School in 1991 and a B.A. with distinction from Stanford University in 1988. Todd received a J.D. from University of Southern California School of Law in 2002 and a B.A. with honors from University of California, San Diego in 1995.